Pokémon X and Y

If nothing else, Pokémon X and Y deserve props for introducing the series’ best generational gameplay gimmick in Mega Evolution, and for finally giving a reliable counter to dragon Pokémon by introducing the fairy type. As the mainline games’ first foray into the 3D space, X and Y are a fulcrum point for the franchise, but they’re also filled with a fair bit of quirks that have knocked them down many Pokémon player’s rankings over the years. Its story, held up by a series’ worst evil team in Team Flare, is messy and introduces some pretty wild elements to the universe, including an old man persisting for thousands of years to find his Floette.

But despite those potentially interesting threads, it never feels like it quite lives up to the promise. Maybe one day we’ll get a Pokémon Legends game set in the Kalos region that will expand upon these ideas, but for now, X and Y is a pretty significant moment in the series, but one that is often viewed as a breaking point for its usual formula. Fortunately, the generations that followed were more experimental with the structures of a Pokémon game.